Report on ‘possible links’ raises questions about extent and scope of Canadian authorities’ use of cyber weaponsResearchers have uncovered “possible links” between Ontario’s provincial police force and an Israel-based military-grade spyware maker called Paragon Solutions, raising questions about the extent and scope of Canadian authorities’ use of cyber weapons.The new findings were published by the Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto, which tracks and identifies digital threats against civil society, and come three years after a parliamentary committee in Canada called for Ottawa to update the country’s privacy laws in the wake of press reports that the national police force was using spyware to hack mobile phone devices. No laws were ever passed to address the controversy. Continue reading...
A Citizen Lab report found "possible links" between Ontario's Provincial Police (OPP) and Israeli spyware maker Paragon Solutions, raising concerns about Canadian authorities' use of cyber weapons. The report details a "growing ecosystem" of spyware capability among Ontario police services, citing evidence of OPP use of surveillance tools and Toronto Police Service seeking authorization to use spyware for intercepting encrypted messages. This follows past controversy over the Royal Canadian Mounted Police's admission of spyware use.
